Job Discussion Forums

[markle]

What the main reason that you would (or will, or did) leave? I mean regardless if all other reasons were removed what would still make you leave, sooner or later.

For me it is the fact that ESL is a dead-end career in Japan for me. That is not Japan's fault or even ESL's. I haven't, and no longer want to, capitalise on the opportunites in ESL here, and I'm ill-equipped for any other career. If it wasn't for this I think I could overcome anything else.

[king kakipi]

I left Japan for:-
vastly increased salary (A$68000 pa) with the only future change being upwards
job security
vastly reduced hours (22 hrs on site per week)
paid holidays (12 weeks per year + extra 13 weeks every 7th year (Long Service Leave)
paid sick leave (currently sitting on 150+ days on full pay)
cheaper cost of living (in Australia compared to Tokyo)
space !
to no longer feel like an 'outsider'
more outgoing students
laid back lifestyle
better, much better, weather
safer ( no earthquakes)
licorice
cheaper beer
bigger iced doughnuts

Having said all that, I'd still consider living in Japan in the future because:-
more to see and do
'novelty' of being an outsider
more compliant students
more rigourous (maybe.....) education system for my son
safer (less crime)
you can ride a bicycle without a helmet
cheaper sushi
Izakaya (vs Aussie Pubs)
Asahi Super Dry
New Year
K1
The smell of tatami
Hot baths that stay hot
Family ( great in-laws; I have none of my family here in Oz)
Good transport and therefore not having to drive everywhere
Great Parks
and of course KAKIPI

[king kakipi]

woops, sorry not "number 1" but top 15.....but well-tempered with reasons to return of which I forgot another very important one for me:-
10 professional symphony orchestras in Tokyo alone

[gonzarelli]

For me, it's because ESL is a dead-end job with no prospects for improvement.

More importantly though, I would never be able to put any of my future kids through the education system here. It's too stifling.

Nothing to do with culture or discrimination or anything like that.

[User N. Ame]

[Sherri]

I agree with the reasons the other posters have stated. I especially agree with the deadend job side of things. I really could not go much further in my career there. I am a career ESL/ EFL person. Even at the admin level, you are limited as a non-Japanese person with how much responsibility you can have. You just end up teaching the same students and the same classes year after year. There is a big, wide world of TEFL and international education out there. Also even the university gigs are not that great, and you can end up on your ear after 3 years and on a constant job search.

Also, there is no way I would put my kids through the education system in Japan.

Sherri

[king kakipi]

Can you tell me why you wouldn't put your kids through the J education system? There are problems here (in Oz) with education and I thought my son (only 14 months just now) might be better of in Japan..........

[Vince]

The number one reason was that my wife got pregnant, and I didn't want to support a child on EFL income. If I can get a job with better pay and more security, I'll go back.

[Sherri]

[bornslippy1981]

I left because I had accomplished the goals I set before coming/within the first few weeks I was there.

Also, Japan wasn't the only other country I'd want to live in. I'm positioning myself now to move again in about 18 months, and when returning to the US, I'll be able to open up a business. It's possible I could have my business in a year, but I'd still like to travel because it'll be difficult as a small business owner.

[Angelfish]

Because I miss Europe and European culture.

Also the noise.

And the extortionate airfares.

[king kakipi]

Thanks Sherri.

I can empathise with a few of your points!

KK

[Wasabi Bomb]

The only real reason is the lack of career prospects in EFL. I'm a teacher trainer now but my company doesn't reward that with a significant increase of pay. I applied for the position mainly because the extreme lack of responsibility was harming my self-confidence. Really that's it. If there were foreigners in my company earning double what I make with benefits and bonuses, I would be much more likely to stick around long term.

[J.]

Boredom. If you don't speak Japanese very well, and maybe even if you do but don't want to go the "inch up by seniority and bum-licking" route that most companies still seem to favour, you get stuck in a dead end that you can never get out of. Probably if you have qualifications or talent they are not recognized, nor rewarded. They don't know what to do with you beyond sticking you in translation, teaching or another resident English speaker niche. You don't fit the mold, so there's no position for you.

Parents don't understand what you are doing. They still feel it's fine to memorize and repeat everything but not be able to generate a word of authentic communication, a state of affairs that is discouraging to a teacher over the long haul. Most don't try to speak English at home or support your lessons, so it's hard to make headway in only 1 class a week.

With adult students you are teaching many of the same ones for years but because of limited class time and the fact that English is an amusing hobby for most, mistakes become ossified so they are still speaking haltingly in the present tense, in Japanese word order, after 5 or even 10 years of studying. Of course I hope I am teaching more than English, as we consider things meaningful to our lives and learn new things, but it's hard not to look at this as a failure, at least in teaching how to speak English. I think they do learn how to say what they are thinking in my classes, even if in mostly bad English.

Lack of people of depth to talk to about more than the latest fad.

Loneliness. Missing family over time. Getting homesick for the ocean and forests and space to breathe. Finally just getting tired of the daily struggle it takes to live and thoroughly sick of the staring and rudeness.

Sick of being a "guest" in the place I live. Feeling utterly helpless with all these clowns in government making rules about my life here and not even a vote.

[GambateBingBangBOOM]

Great post J.!


I think that in fairness, not a whole lot of Canadian kids west of Ottawa (unless they are in the northern Ontario or a tiny enclave) try to speak much French with their parents, either- or vice versa, though.